


Love Sees Farther

by Karios



Category: Leverage
Genre: Christmas Decorations, Christmas Party, Christmas Presents, Communication, Love, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-21
Updated: 2018-12-21
Packaged: 2019-09-22 06:16:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17054717
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Karios/pseuds/Karios
Summary: Maggie, Nate, and Sophie spend their first Christmas together.There's decor, food, presents, and quite possibly, some stolen art.





	Love Sees Farther

**Author's Note:**

  * For [decidueye](https://archiveofourown.org/users/decidueye/gifts).



> Hello Raleigh! I hope you're having the best holiday season.
> 
> Thank you for the best prompt!
> 
> Thank you to Rosefox for betaing.

They had been enthusiastic in decorating the house for Christmas, Maggie thought as she took in their living room. String lights and flocked garlands trailed over most of the flat surfaces, wreaths and wooden snowflakes were tacked to the walls, and they had even swapped out some of the knickknacks for more festive collections of reindeer and snowmen. Her own contribution had been digging out a model train set she’d had in storage for years to run on its little track around the tree.

She scanned the room for her partners. Nathan and his dark green sweater nearly disappeared behind the large fir he was wrestling into place in the corner of the room. In contrast, Sophie stood out, clad in a short, tight red sequined dress and pointed shoe combo that the three of them had affectionately dubbed the ‘naughty elf’ outfit. She was diligently winding some of the garland around the bannisters, and oh so coincidentally giving Maggie a view of her backside that should have been sufficiently distracting. And it would have been, except that her mind couldn’t help but think of the last time she’d felt like celebrating Christmas, well before Sam had died, and her throat constricted slightly.

Sophie twisted until her eyes meet Maggie’s. “What do you think?”

“It looks like we’re overcompensating,” she said, her tone sharp for only a moment before she corrected herself. “I’m sorry, it’s fine, really. I’ll be right back.” Maggie fled toward the kitchen.

Sophie turned to Nate, who stood next to the tree, untangling bundles of lights. “Who’s going to get that?”

“Get what?” he asked. “Is the phone ringing?”

“Your wife,” Sophie answered with a sigh. How had the two of them ever gotten on without her? Oh, right.

She hopped down the rest of the stairs and headed for the kitchen, where Maggie was busying herself with basting a golden turkey.

“Certainly smells like Christmas in here,” she commented brightly.

“It does. I was glad to wrestle away turkey duty from Eliot for that reason alone.”

“The mulled cider doesn’t hurt either.” Sophie moved to the stove, giving the saucepan a stir before serving herself a glass, which she set aside to cool.

Maggie backed her way out of the oven until she came to rest against the countertop, running one hand through her hair.

“How are you holding up?” asked Sophie.

“I'm... good.”

Sophie arched an eyebrow, her face smoothing into that “I know you better than that” stare.

“No, really. It’s just, well, I haven't celebrated Christmas in a while,” she admitted. “There wasn't much point, after...” She let the word hang because there was no need to finish the sentence, not for Sophie. “There were a couple of I.Y.S. annual office parties and one year James got me—”

“Please, no mentions of Sterling this close to dinner.”

That got Maggie to crack a smile. “You’re adorable when you're jealous.”

“Not jealous, and...” She jutted out one hip. “I think you find me adorable, full stop.”

“Would you settle for one out of two?”

Sophie pursed her lips. “Counteroffer: I shall forget your slanderous accusation for a kiss.”

Maggie pecked Sophie's lips, and the rest of the shadows lifted from her face, and she smiled again. “Excellent negotiating skills. In another life, you could have been me.”

“Maggie, that's adorable, but I have lived many lives and in none of them was I as honest as you.” She turned to collect the glass from the counter. “If this is too much,” she said, “we could dial back on all the Christmas. The others would understand, so would Nate and I.”

“No, no.” She shook her head. “There’s too much to celebrate this year. I want to do this, I promise.”

Sophie waved the glass. “So long as you're sure.”

“I am. So what about you, did Leverage make time to celebrate Christmas?”

“For certain values of celebrated,” agreed Sophie. She took a long swallow of her cider. “We stole it last year.”

“How do you even steal a holiday?”

“In this particular case, we leaned heavily into commercialism and got an absurd number of people to buy a hideously ugly baby doll.”

“I'm not following.”

“I feel a lot, you feel a lot, we all feel a lot. Baby-Feels-A-Lot,” Sophie singsonged.

“Baby-Feels-A-Lot was you? _You_ were responsible for that monstrosity being everywhere, and searing that ridiculous jingle into my brain?”

“Hey!” Sophie drained the rest of her cider, then folded her arms. “We saved countless children from possible serious injury at the hands of a corrupt and dangerous manufacturer with that doll... and the fact that it was the ugliest thing I’d ever seen is a testament to our talents.”

“Awww, you're pouting,” she teased.

Nate appeared in the door. “Maggie, where’s the—”

“Hall closet,” she answered.

“What?”

“You carried in a Christmas tree, which means there are loose needles in the carpet, which means you want to vacuum, which means you want the vacuum cleaner. It is, where it always has been, in the hall closet.”

Nate looked only slightly annoyed as he said, “Of course it is, on it.”

Sophie, on the other hand, looked ready to applaud her. “All those people Nathan stayed two steps ahead of, and you can do that.”

Maggie wasn't as impressed with herself. For all his perceptive capacity, Nate could barely see two inches in front of his nose when it came down his own feelings, his own life. The fact that it had taken years for him to realize it should be the three of them, that it was never about choosing, was proof of that.

“I guess you should be glad I'm not one of the people you tried to con,” Maggie said.

In the next room, the vacuum cleaner roared to life.

“You almost were once, during that job with the Davids.”

Maggie bit her lower lip, amused at the memory. “That pathetic attempt by Eliot doesn't count as _almost._ ”

“No, before that, I would have tried to fool you with a fake David.”

“Why didn't you?”

“Nate. He insisted there was no better art authenticator on the face of the Earth.” Sophie stepped closer to Maggie then, practically pinning her to the counter. “I was jealous then.” Sophie's mouth met Maggie's in a gentle kiss. “Of you.”

As Sophie pulled back, Maggie slunk an arm around her waist and pulled her wife in for a longer kiss. Maggie tipped her head, her lips insistent and searching. When they broke apart again, Maggie came away lighter in spirit and smeared with Sophie's lipstick. “So glad we worked that out,” Maggie murmured.

Sophie slid down to press a kiss to the hollow of Maggie's throat. “I do rather like this arrangement.”

“I'm very glad you made such a worthy opponent.”

“Hm, for Nate, or for you?”

“Nate. The man has plenty of good reasons to be attracted to you,” Maggie said, running a finger along the bridge of Sophie's nose. “But he loves a challenge more than anything else.”

“You make it sound like he'd shag a jigsaw puzzle if it had enough pieces.”

Maggie snorted. “Wouldn't he?”

They both dissolved into loud, clear laughter at the mental image of it.

“How long will we have to be together before you two stop getting alone together just to laugh at me?” Nate asked, appearing in the doorway.

“Not everything is about you,” Sophie said.

“Right, this time I got Sophie alone to kiss her brains out.” Maggie smirked. “But, since you asked, a decade at least.”

“Longer,” Sophie put in.

He opened and shut his mouth a few times before thinking better of whatever he had been planning to say, and grabbed the pitcher of eggnog from the fridge to pour himself a short glass. After the first sip, he grimaced as though it had gone bad.

“Something the matter, darling?” Sophie asked, intentionally widening her eyes.

“Who makes eggnog without rum?”

“People who prefer it with brandy?” suggested Maggie. She caught Sophie’s eye, and it was all Sophie could do to keep from laughing at him again.

“All right, I walked into that. Who makes eggnog without alcohol?”

“The wives of an alcoholic,” Sophie said smoothly.

“Functioning. You always ignore the functioning part,” grumbled Nate.

“It’s forgettable. Like ex-wife,” Maggie said without bite.

“Don't need that one anymore.” Nate smiled and looked at Maggie like he couldn't believe his luck. She'd missed that expression.

“No, and you never will again.” She shoved off the counter and stepped into Nate's arms. She brushed kisses along his jaw, and then he captured her lips with his own.

“I never thought we'd get back here,” confessed Nate.

“I did,” Sophie said. Maggie pivoted in Nate's arms to face Sophie. Nate draped himself over Maggie. “When Nate wasn't even Nate yet. Just another adversary. He doesn't let go of anything; how could I expect he would possibly let go of you, Maggie?”

“And yet you stayed.” She didn't intend to sound in awe, but in light of her own choices, she was. “Why? Why stay?”

“I didn't always,” Sophie said, because even though Maggie knew that already, it sounded like she needed the reminder. “But Nate's the kind of man who does everything with near single-minded attention. To be the focus of such intensity has a certain kind of rush to it.”

Maggie nodded against Nate's chest. She knew that feeling exactly.

Sophie's gaze ticked up from Maggie to Nate. “Loving you... it's like capturing lightning in a bottle. It feels dangerous, and stupid, yet powerful.”

“Stupid?” Nate all but squeaked in protest.

“Yes.” She rolled her eyes. “You, Nathan Ford, have unequivocally been the stupidest, and best, decision I've ever made.”

Maggie stepped back toward the oven. “I think I’ll check the turkey so you two can have a moment to kiss away that look on his face.”

“I do not have a look.”

“Yes, you do,” replied both women in unison.

Sophie slotted into the place Maggie had just vacated, and brushed her lips against Nate’s.

“Let's do our presents before the others get here,” suggested Maggie. “One more moment that's just ours.”

Murmurs of agreement sounded from Sophie and Nate. The three of them separated to retrieve their packages from various stash points and met back up under the tree.

Maggie went first, handing a small package to Nate. A button tumbled out onto his palm.

“A new button camera?” Maggie nodded. Nate picked up the attached card, read it aloud: “Hopefully you won't forget this one!”

“I wanted to get something I knew you'd use.” Maggie enjoyed rubbing it in.

Nate frowned at the tiny camera. “That's not funny.”

Sophie burst out laughing. “Oh yes, it is.”

He tossed her an equally small box. “Hurry up and open that before I change my mind.”

Removing the paper and bow revealed a small velvet jewelry box. Sophie popped it open and withdrew a gold locket. Her thumb ran over the compass on the front.

Her eyes met Nate's. “For the next time you need find yourself,” he said, “know that your heart will point you to your true north.”

She reached over and swatted him, her eyes shining. “When did you get so romantic?”

Nate shrugged. “I learned from the best.”

“I guess it's my turn then. Here you are, Maggie,” Sophie said as she handed a box over.

Maggie opened it to reveal a pair of earrings. 

“They're neither stolen, nor purchased with any ill-gotten gains. I thought you'd appreciate that.”

Maggie eyed them suspiciously. They had to be worth half a year's salary at least. “Where did you get them, then?”

“They were a gift from a late boyfriend's aunt.”

“Must have been some aunt,” Maggie said, still marveling.

“Well, yes, she's the Countess of Kensington.”

Nate tried to be helpful. “She's not lying about that. Er, not lying about any of it.”

“I can get you something else?” Sophie asked, a hint of worry to the question.

“No, no, I'm sorry.” Maggie put them on. “They're beautiful. Thank you, Sophie.”

Maggie looked self-conscious as Sophie tore into hers. “I'm afraid my gift isn't nearly so extravagant.”

“Handcuffs?” Sophie held them up.

“For your next roleplay night,” Maggie explained. “I know how much you enjoy chasing each other. Go ahead and catch each other too.”

“I love them!” Her grin turned devilish. “And the way your mind works.”

Maggie smiled back. “Thought you might.”

Nate cleared his throat, pressing his box into Maggie's lap. “Speaking of roleplay night...”

“Huh?”

“Open it; it will make more sense.”

The confused twist to Maggie's face only deepened as she produced a lamp from the box. “You got me our bedroom lamp?”

“A copy of our bedroom lamp. I may have broken the last one trying to jump from the dresser to the bed.”

Sophie added, “That worked better with Parisian rooftops.”

“Better the lamp than your neck. Be more careful.” Maggie smacked him.

“How do my gifts keep getting me hit?” Nate complained.

Maggie kissed him. “You're just lucky, I guess.”

“Very.”

“About to be luckier.” Sophie slid her present for Nate toward him. “Be careful,” she pleaded as he tore into the wrapping paper. “I don't want you to scratch it.”

“You sound like someone's mother.” He chuckled, until his mirth was replaced with shock as he stared down at the Gauguin in his lap. “You stole me Still Life with Three Puppies?”

“I thought it was thematic. Three puppies, three goblets, three of us. I haven't ever picked a target with someone else in mind.”

“You've done perfectly. It's beautiful.”

Maggie stood up. “We're not keeping a stolen Gauguin in this house!”

“Maggie—” Sophie began.

“Nathan Ford, so help me, if you touch that painting I am phoning my lawyer.”

Nate ran his fingers along the frame instead. “All right, Sophie. Tell Maggie you didn't steal it.”

“But I did.”

Nate's hand jerked back from the painting as though it had bitten him.

“Long enough for a good friend to paint that reproduction. You're the authenticator, have it tested if you like,” challenged Sophie.

“Let's say I believe you,” Maggie said, and against all professional and personal reason, she did. “Just why did your friend need the original?”

“Oh, he didn't. Stealing and returning the painting was my gift to me.” The doorbell rang. “I think I'll get that.”

Nate got to his feet, and stuck a discarded bow in Maggie's hair. “Welcome to loving a pair of thieves. It's not too late to back out.”

“Never.” Her eyes shifted to the painting. “Can I still test that?”

Nate laughed. “You wouldn't be you if you didn't. And we wouldn't have it any other way.”


End file.
